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Profit from your idea- offer smart licensing deals and royalties
When you get to this point, get a lawyer. There are cheap start up lawyers like Lawtrades, Upcounsel, and Priorlegal. Here we will just lay out some basics.
Sometimes, it’s not smart to patent your idea. A lot of patents make no money. What can you do to minimize your risks and maximize your chances of earning a profit? The most successful approach for inventors is to license their ideas. A license is an agreement that allows someone else to use or sell your invention for a limited period of time. In return, you receive a one time payment or continuing payments called royalties.
The licensing process
- You find a company interested in your invention
- You disclose information about invention (use disclosure agreement if disclosing secrets)
- After evaluating it, the company is still interested in the invention
- Company makes proposal and begins negotiation. Negotiations are successful and you reach an agreement on contract issues
- Parties agree on all major issues and execute a license agreement
- Your invention is commercialized and you earn royalties until the agreement ends
In your agreement list the title of the agreement, category (co-ownership, evaluation, corporate, partnership), date of the agreement, parties to agreement, termination date, renewal date, and ownership notes. If you are a joint owner…